# Homebrew - Virgil's Brewery



## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

I have a friend that has been brewing his own for more than a year. Finally got the setup and did it myself. It's been sitting in the fermenter for 1.5 weeks now. I'll be bottling it this coming Thursday or Friday night. I can't wait to drink it!!! :al

Here's my full writeup with photos.

Edit: Forgot to add that while I was monitoring the boil I kicked back and had a cigar. Definately helped me take my mind off the fact that it was nearing 115 degrees outside.


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## Commander Quan (May 6, 2003)

Nice action shot of the bubbling airlock

Good luck with the bottling, thats they only part in the whole process that actually seams like work to me. Enjoy the fruits of your labor.


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## giono2 (May 15, 2007)

Good to see a fellow homebrewer here. I've been at it for about a year now and have just recently switched over to all grain and kegging. It only took three batched into bottles before I decided to get the kegs. It really is an enjoyable hobby. Hope you had fun with it.


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## clampdown (Feb 7, 2006)

Nice pictures, keep us updated on how it turns out. :al


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## kjd2121 (Jul 13, 2006)

Virgil, it sounds like it's time for another herf - once those bottles are ready that is.:al:al

Nice write-up.


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## tiptone (Jul 30, 2006)

Bottling is for the birds, or special occasions. 

*Kegerator!!!*


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

kjd2121 said:


> Virgil, it sounds like it's time for another herf - once those bottles are ready that is.:al:al


Oh yeah!!! The bottles should be ready by August 1. :bl


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## piperman (Sep 8, 2005)

Silhanek said:


> I have a friend that has been brewing his own for more than a year. Finally got the setup and did it myself. It's been sitting in the fermenter for 1.5 weeks now. I'll be bottling it this coming Thursday or Friday night. I can't wait to drink it!!! :al
> 
> Here's my full writeup with photos.
> 
> Edit: Forgot to add that while I was monitoring the boil I kicked back and had a cigar. Definately helped me take my mind off the fact that it was nearing 115 degrees outside.


Okay Virgil I have tried this three times now and every time it comes out like wine hardly any carbonation, is there a way to make it so it has as much carbonation as lets say Bud. Now everyone has said are you using sugar in your bottling process and yes I am but still no luck. any advise


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

piperman said:


> Okay Virgil I have tried this three times now and every time it comes out like wine hardly any carbonation, is there a way to make it so it has as much carbonation as lets say Bud. Now everyone has said are you using sugar in your bottling process and yes I am but still no luck. any advise


Well, I'm still a newbie at this, so I'm not sure if this is going to be accurate. Sugar is extracted from the barley in the mash and the yeast that is added consumes it and converts it to alcohol. So, right now in my fermenter the yeast is using up all of the sugar. As a byproduct, it releases CO2 through the air lock.

I will bottle it at 2 weeks and at that point, I'll have beer. Since I allowed the CO2 to be released throug the air lock, it will be flat. During the bottling process I will add approx. 1 cup of priming suger. This is just enough for the yeast to react in the sealed bottle. This time, it is unable to release that CO2 and that is what causes the carbonation.

So, I have no clue what is going on, but if your beer was flat, you didn't get a good enough reaction in the bottles to get your carbonation.

Homebrew Depot and Brewer's Connection are 2 local shops. You could probably call them and both should be able to help you with what is going on. There also seems to be quite a few homebrewers on here that should be able to give better info if I'm wrong.


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## piperman (Sep 8, 2005)

Silhanek said:


> So, I have no clue what is going on, but if your beer was flat, you didn't get a good enough reaction in the bottles to get your carbonation.


Well it wasn't really flat in the bottle but when you poured it, it went flat pretty quick. But thanks for the links. good luck on yours keep use posted.


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

That's good advice Silhanek, but I've got a couple things to add...

Piperman, assuming everything else is in order, i.e. you're adding 1 cup priming sugar to your bottling bucket, and then siphoning your beer from the secondary fermenter into that bottling bucket, it could be that the temperature where you're bottle conditioning your beer is too cool, causing the yeast to go dormant instead of producing additional CO2 to carbonate. If that is the case, simple fix, just move the bottles to a warmer location (60-70*F) and wait another 2-4 weeks. Many guys make the mistake of brewing in winter, and storing their beers in a cold basement. That beer is always going to be flat--unless it's a lager instead of an ale, but that's another story for another day. 

If you're sure that's not the issue, how are you sanitizing your bottles? If you're using soap, the soap could be the culprit. :2

Does any of this sound relevant to your situation piperman?

EDIT: I see that you're in AZ, so maybe 'too cold' isn't the problem. Is your bottled beer conditioning between 60 and 70*F?


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

Oh, and nice blog Silhanek. Welcome to yet another slope! :hn

BTW, I'm no expert, but I've been brewing a few batches a year for ten years now. I still bottle (no room for a kegerator), and am pleased to see that some gorillas are homebrewers! :tu


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

ColdCuts said:


> Piperman, assuming everything else is in order, i.e. you're adding 1 cup priming sugar to your bottling bucket...


Actually, 3/4 - 1 cup corn sugar, depending on the recipe.


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## Commander Quan (May 6, 2003)

All Macro brewed beer is force carbonated with CO2 so it'll have large fizzy bubbles beer that is naturally carbonated will have very small fine bubbles.


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## DennisP (May 13, 2007)

You may try using a little more sugar, I know when I started it will be very low carbonation, I'd increase the 1.5 cups sugar and it would help.

Also, make sure you are getting good seals with your caps. We'd spend the money to get the best ones and a good capper.

Finally, let them sit longer and every 5 days or so shake them up.


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

Commander Quan said:


> All Macro brewed beer is force carbonated with CO2 so it'll have large fizzy bubbles beer that is naturally carbonated will have very small fine bubbles.


Interesting observation.

Since the CO2 doesn't know whether it is coming from forced carbonation or byproduct of the yeast, I don't think that is the reason there is difference in bubble size.

It is probably related to the fact that commercial beer is usually filtered. CO2 comes out of solution at solid sites, which may be microscopically small. Thats why you can often see a train of bubbles originating at one site on a glass. Having many nucleation sites in the beer where the CO2 can come out of solution will result in small bubbles. This is the case in most home brew. In filtered beer, there are fewer nucleation site so bubbles have the opportunity to get larger. Same thing applies to champagne made the real way vs. filtered and force carbonated.

Nitrogen is a different conversation, and is unrelated to the discussion above.

As pointed out above, you want to carbonate at a relatively warm temperature. Check that before adding more sugar.


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## Alpedhuez55 (Dec 16, 2005)

DennisP said:


> Also, make sure you are getting good seals with your caps. We'd spend the money to get the best ones and a good capper.


The capper makes a big difference. Consider one that sits on a table instead of the ones with two handles. Or you can get a capper/Corker combo incase you want to try making wine next!!! And switch from plastic buckets to glass carboys.

I am going to get back into it soon. I gave away my equipment when I moved this year. It was just too bulky to move. But now that I am settled I will give it another go. One of the local breweries has a home brew shop. Think I may brew a nice Belgian Style ale!!!


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## Alpedhuez55 (Dec 16, 2005)

ColdCuts said:


> Many guys make the mistake of brewing in winter, and storing their beers in a cold basement. That beer is always going to be flat--unless it's a lager instead of an ale, but that's another story for another day.


Up north I had a little section in the basement that was perfect for lagering in the winter. I will miss that. I suppose I could get a wine chiller to do that though.


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## Commander Quan (May 6, 2003)

SeanGAR said:


> Interesting observation.
> 
> Since the CO2 doesn't know whether it is coming from forced carbonation or byproduct of the yeast, I don't think that is the reason there is difference in bubble size.
> 
> ...


Interesting. I didn't know that it was the filtration that caused this.


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

DennisP said:


> You may try using a little more sugar, I know when I started it will be very low carbonation, I'd increase the 1.5 cups sugar and it would help.


If you go this route, it's important to understand there are risks. Add too much sugar, and the bottles will explode. I've seen photos where shards of amber-colored glass are embedded in walls as a result of this. It would suck to grab a homebrew at halftime and be showered with glass shrapnel and beer. I think you outta try to find a safer solution to your carbonation problem first. :2


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## piperman (Sep 8, 2005)

ColdCuts said:


> That's good advice Silhanek, but I've got a couple things to add...
> 
> Piperman, assuming everything else is in order, i.e. you're adding 1 cup priming sugar to your bottling bucket, and then siphoning your beer from the secondary fermenter into that bottling bucket, it could be that the temperature where you're bottle conditioning your beer is too cool, causing the yeast to go dormant instead of producing additional CO2 to carbonate. If that is the case, simple fix, just move the bottles to a warmer location (60-70*F) and wait another 2-4 weeks. Many guys make the mistake of brewing in winter, and storing their beers in a cold basement. That beer is always going to be flat--unless it's a lager instead of an ale, but that's another story for another day.
> 
> ...


Well I was putting 1 teaspoon sugar per 12-oz bottle and shake it up every day, now about temp I store in a dark closet in the coldest room in the house but no where near 60* to 70*.
Now Im not use all grain does that have anything to do with it.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

piperman said:


> Well I was putting 1 teaspoon sugar per 12-oz bottle and shake it up every day, now about temp I store in a dark closet in the coldest room in the house but no where near 60* to 70*.
> Now Im not use all grain does that have anything to do with it.


Shaking shouldn't be needed. Were you brewing from 5 or 6.5 gallon fermenter/bottling buckets? The priming sugar I have came in a 5oz. premeasured package. I think it's 3/4 or 1 cup. When I bottle, I'm going to siphon from the fermenting bucket to the bottling bucket and add the sugar to the whole batch at that time. (Not to each individual bottle.)

In AZ, our house is usually 80-85 degrees in the summer. The temperature the last 2 weeks on my fermenting bucket has been 78-80. That's on the high range for ale yeast. Lager yeast needs to be even colder around 55 degrees and ususally requires a refridgerator to ferment. I wonder if you were not getting a good yeast reaction with temperatures too hot?

I've gotta finish this first batch and see how it turns out, but I'll post on here next time I brew. It consists of a couple hours watching a pot of liquid boil. It would be a perfect herf and learning experience if you wanted to come over. Being able to help my friend first before attempting my own made a world of difference.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

Also, for anyone looking to homebrew, here are 2 books that should be a must read. They are really cheap, but even better, I checked them out from the library. Give them a look.

The Complete Joy of Homebrewing Third Edition

How to Brew: Everything You Need To Know To Brew Beer Right The First Time


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## piperman (Sep 8, 2005)

Silhanek said:


> Shaking shouldn't be needed. Were you brewing from 5 or 6.5 gallon fermenter/bottling buckets? The priming sugar I have came in a 5oz. premeasured package. I think it's 3/4 or 1 cup. When I bottle, I'm going to siphon from the fermenting bucket to the bottling bucket and add the sugar to the whole batch at that time. (Not to each individual bottle.)
> 
> In AZ, our house is usually 80-85 degrees in the summer. The temperature the last 2 weeks on my fermenting bucket has been 78-80. That's on the high range for ale yeast. Lager yeast needs to be even colder around 55 degrees and ususally requires a refridgerator to ferment. I wonder if you were not getting a good yeast reaction with temperatures too hot?
> 
> I've gotta finish this first batch and see how it turns out, but I'll post on here next time I brew. It consists of a couple hours watching a pot of liquid boil. It would be a perfect herf and learning experience if you wanted to come over. Being able to help my friend first before attempting my own made a world of difference.


Well crap while I was PM you, you were answering by questions.


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

piperman said:


> Well I was putting 1 teaspoon sugar per 12-oz bottle and shake it up every day, now about temp I store in a dark closet in the coldest room in the house but no where near 60* to 70*.


Add your corn sugar to the bottling bucket.

As for dropping the temperature in your fermenters, wrap a wet towel around the fermenter, being careful not to disturb the air lock, and then direct a fan toward the wet towel. The water evaporating from the towel will significantly drop the temperature of your young beer. I've had to do this a few times and it works great. If the temperature is too warm for your yeast, you won't be getting a complete fermentation and you won't be getting carbonated beer either. If you're brewing ale you need to get the temperature down to the low 70s (on the high end).

Definitely get a book or two. I can vouch for The Complete Joy Of Homebrewing. It's a bit dated, but still packed with good info. Also, there is a brewing website called midwestsupplies.com. If you order a recipe kit from them they'll send you a FREE how to brew DVD that's super helpful.


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## DennisP (May 13, 2007)

ColdCuts said:


> If you go this route, it's important to understand there are risks. Add too much sugar, and the bottles will explode. I've seen photos where shards of amber-colored glass are embedded in walls as a result of this. It would suck to grab a homebrew at halftime and be showered with glass shrapnel and beer. I think you outta try to find a safer solution to your carbonation problem first. :2


I've used up to 2 cups of sugar for 5 gallons w/o any exploding, but it is a risk.

I definately suggest adding to the bottling bucket, not individually. I always mixed equal parts hot water and sugar until dissolved.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

Finally got a chance to bottle my brew today.

See here.

I tried a little bit. :al So far, so good. Tastes like beer and I think it's going to have a good flavor.

Mmm, beer!!!


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## kjd2121 (Jul 13, 2006)

Wow, Looks good - :tu:tu


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

I checked out the blog. Looks good! :tu

By all means, try one after two weeks, but you might find they get better still around the four-week mark. :2


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## Savvy (Jun 23, 2007)

Brewing your own stuff looks like a good time. I think I may have to look into trying it out once I turn 21, probably will save me some money in the long haul if I can get the hang of it.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

ColdCuts said:


> I checked out the blog. Looks good! :tu
> 
> By all means, try one after two weeks, but you might find they get better still around the four-week mark. :2


Yeah, 2 weeks is the minimum. I was only going to cool them as I was ready for drinking. Some will probably get a month or so of age on them before drinking. By that time, I'll start working on my 2nd batch also.

As for price, I didn't really do this for the money savings and it probably won't be huge. My total cost for this batch was $75 for the kit and $35 for ingredients. So for just ingredients, it was around $0.83 per bottle. I'm doing it more for the fun experience and being able to customize flavors to my liking.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

Ok, I've named it and created a label. I'm going to drink the first bottle this weekend. Check out the label below.


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

Nice label. :tu That's an added step that I've never taken, mostly because removing labels is kind of a pain in the ass.

Now, if you haven't done so already, buy another kit so you can have a new batch in the fermenter while you're drinkin' up your _Fat Tireworks_. :2


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

Removing labels is the worst part of it I've done so far. I only plan to label the few bottles I give away to family and friends. The ones I drink myself will not see a label so I don't have to remove it again.

I drank my first one tonight. :dr It's excellent. 

I'm not really sure if I could have done anything to make it better. I poured it out into a glass and it surprised me a little bit to how dark it was. Very dark, like coke/cola dark. I was expecting more of an amber brown color. But it tasted fine, so color doesn't matter.

Overall, I'm very pleased with the end-product. I was worried the whole time I would do something to ruin the batch. I guess that's good since it caused me to research extensivly and be very tedious to get each step just right.


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

Silhanek said:


> I only plan to label the few bottles I give away to family and friends. The ones I drink myself will not see a label so I don't have to remove it again.


That's smart. :tu

That's weird about the color. I know Fat Tire is an amber, so obviously your clone shouldn't be that dark. But, like you said, it's just a cosmetic issue and the beer tastes good, so it's not a big deal.

The batches I brew, I begin with 1 1/2 - 2 gal. water in my brew kettle, and I put 3 1/2 - 4 gal. in my primary fermenter. Depending on how much water evaporates during the boil, in the end I've got anywhere between 5 - 6 gallons of beer. I suppose that same amount of extract is going to look a good shade darker in 5 gal. than it is in 6 gal. But, that's just a guess.

As for making your beer better, are you already doing two-stage fermentation? If not, it's easy to do and will improve every beer you make. I highly recommend two-stage fermentation. There are also additives you can buy that you toss into the boil to improve your beer. A tsp. of Irish moss, for instance, will accelerate protein coagulation during the end of the boil, which helps prevent chill haze. In other words, your beer will be clearer. A 1 oz. bottle is less than $2. There are lots of different additives available.

What are you brewing next? I've currently got a "Strong Ale" in my primary. It's going to sit in my secondary fermenter for SIX months, before it's bottle conditioned for another FOUR months! It's like aging full-bodied cigars!


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

I'm only setup for single stage fermentation right now. My fermenter is a 6.5 gallon, but I do have a 5 gallon bucket I was using for my sanitizing solution and cleaning bottles in. That would probably work well as a secondary fermenter. At this point, I don't see the need to since what I got is really good. I know you were answering the question of making it better and that is an option I should look at eventually.

At the beginning of the boil I added 1 tsp. gypsum salt. (I could be wrong on this. It came in a little packet with irish moss and I think it was supposed to help with water hardness or keep down boil overs. Something like that.) At the end of my boil when I added the second batch of hops, I also added irish moss.

For my next batch, I'm either going to attempt the same recipe to see if I can reproduce good beer or I've had my eye on this recipe too. Bumble Bee Blonde Ale.


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

Silhanek said:


> I do have a 5 gallon bucket I was using for my sanitizing solution and cleaning bottles in. That would probably work well as a secondary fermenter.


IMO, don't use your 5 gal. bucket as a secondary fermenter. Since you've used it for sanitizing stuff it'll likely have scratches on the inside and scratches harbor bacteria. I use a 6.5 gal. plastic bucket for my primary too, but when you're ready to begin second-stage fermenting, get yourself a 5 gal. glass carboy from your homebrewing supply store. When you rack (transfer) your beer from your primary into your secondary, you'll find there is much less surface area exposed to air in the carboy, and that's a good thing. Be sure to get a carboy brush too. They're the only way you'll be able to clean the inside of the carboy. Which reminds me, speaking of additional gadgets, if you haven't done so already, get yourself a brass jet bottle washer. They're great for rinsing out bottles and carboys. Bottling is still kind of tedious, but with a jet bottle washer, _much_ less so. :2

That Bumble Bee Blonde looks pretty good. :dr


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## mels95yj (Jun 4, 2005)

Congrats on your first brew turning out so good. My first is in my secondary. Another week and I'll bottle it. I just went with an Amber Ale. Hopefully, mine will turn out good as well.

Mel


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## piperman (Sep 8, 2005)

Is it full of carbonation or just a little?


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

piperman said:


> Is it full of carbonation or just a little?


It's just right. It doesn't fizz like soda or anything like that.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

The last couple months have been really busy for me. Finally got around to brewing my 2nd batch last Sunday. I did go with the Bumblebee Blonde Ale recipe mentioned above. When I did my first batch, it was 115 degrees outside. My little camp stove had a hard time boiling with it 55 degrees out here on Sunday afternoon. I had to finally put the lid on while it was boiling to keep the heat in. Looking at getting a bigger burner.

Everything else went as planned until Tuesday night. Came home and found foam coming out the airlock and the lid was dome shaped from the pressure pushing it up. I pulled the air lock out and beer foamed out of the top. I wish I had pictures now, but I was more concerned with cleaning up the mess. I left the air lock out until finally being able to put it back in Wednesday night. I checked with my friend who also brews and he said I just got an EXTREMELY active fermentation. It was foaming so much that it would plug up the airlock. Finally settled down enough after a day. Now I'm worried that my brew was conaminated while the whole explosion was happening. I'm going to continue with this batch, but there's the possibility that it was ruined.

Should be drinkable by Dec. 23rd though. Just in time for Christmas.

Virgil


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## kjd2121 (Jul 13, 2006)

I hope it all works out for you Virgil.


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## DennisP (May 13, 2007)

Silhanek said:


> The last couple months have been really busy for me. Finally got around to brewing my 2nd batch last Sunday. I did go with the Bumblebee Blonde Ale recipe mentioned above. When I did my first batch, it was 115 degrees outside. My little camp stove had a hard time boiling with it 55 degrees out here on Sunday afternoon. I had to finally put the lid on while it was boiling to keep the heat in. Looking at getting a bigger burner.
> 
> Everything else went as planned until Tuesday night. Came home and found foam coming out the airlock and the lid was dome shaped from the pressure pushing it up. I pulled the air lock out and beer foamed out of the top. I wish I had pictures now, but I was more concerned with cleaning up the mess. I left the air lock out until finally being able to put it back in Wednesday night. I checked with my friend who also brews and he said I just got an EXTREMELY active fermentation. It was foaming so much that it would plug up the airlock. Finally settled down enough after a day. Now I'm worried that my brew was conaminated while the whole explosion was happening. I'm going to continue with this batch, but there's the possibility that it was ruined.
> 
> ...


I've had a batch or two like that and used a blowoff tube instead of an airlock for these.


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## Commander Quan (May 6, 2003)

DennisP said:


> I've had a batch or two like that and used a blowoff tube instead of an airlock for these.


:tpd:

At least you caught it in time. A little bit of beer on the floor is a lot better than having to mop the ceiling after blow out.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

DennisP said:


> I've had a batch or two like that and used a blowoff tube instead of an airlock for these.


Yeah, I'd like to get a glass fermenter with a blowoff tube like you mention. That would have contained the mess better. This is only my 2nd batch, but from what I understand, contamination and oxidation are the 2 things I need to prevent in this stage. It was foaming and bubbling so much that the pressure inside should have blocked anything from getting in. My brewing mentor also said the layer of foam will keep the oxygen out also.

Last night and this morning I'm still getting good airlock bubbling, so I think the process should complete fine. My hopes are still that this batch turns out good, but at the very least, it's been an interesting experience.

Virgil


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## ColdCuts (Jul 21, 2006)

Are you using a 6.5 gallon bucket for your primary fermenter? If you're putting five gallons of beer into a 6.5 gallon bucket, you should be OK next time.

But, if that happens to you again, you could try to shove a length of sanitized 5/16" tubing in the airlock hole and put the other end in a small pail of water nearby. This would work as a blow-off tube, and your beer wouldn't be exposed to the air.

Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.


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## Silhanek (Oct 23, 2006)

My primary fermenter is a 6.5 gallon bucket. I think I ended up with about 5.5 gallons in there and it foamed out. I'm bottling on Sunday, so we'll see what it looks like at that point. 

Virgil


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## hova45 (Jun 17, 2007)

I am considering making my own brew, I would like to be a bit stronger something around the 8-10 % abv. Any recommendations would be great.


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## SeanGAR (Jul 9, 2004)

hova45 said:


> I am considering making my own brew, I would like to be a bit stronger something around the 8-10 % abv. Any recommendations would be great.


What do you like for beer flavor? Lots of malt .. lots of hops .. balance .. how about the Belgian tastes? In that abv range I prefer a DIPA any day of the week, with Imperial Russian in second and Belgian strong ales far, far behind ... but ... YMMV.


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